


Don't know what else to try, but you tell me every time

by SleepyBanshee



Category: Runaways (Comics), Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: After season 1, F/M, One-Shot, curse words, gert decides that shes tired of keeping chase at a distance, gert has Anxiety, they officially are runaways now
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-13
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-09-17 18:07:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16979340
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SleepyBanshee/pseuds/SleepyBanshee
Summary: Gert adjusts to a lack of resources for her anxiety. Chase wants to help, but his help involves offering to give her a massage and Gert is 100% sure if that actually happens there's no stopping her from jumping him.





	Don't know what else to try, but you tell me every time

The thing that no one ever mentions about anxiety is how sore you get. It isn’t all insomnia and thinking of all the worst case scenarios that could possibly happen. It is that. But it’s also being so tense that your muscles burn from constant exertion. Keeping yourself together was a workout all on its own. Usually Gert would be ten minutes deep in a hot bath by now. Candles would be lit and her favorite calming spotify playlist would be playing in the background. The warm water would soothe her sore muscles and the oasis of the bathroom would calm her down. Usually Gert would add clean sheets, meds, and a good solid twelve hours of sleep to really give her body and mind a break. 

There were no such luxuries in the hostel. She didn’t have a deep tub that was private. She didn’t have candles that could be used for ambience rather than necessity. She certainly did not have her favorite playlist or her meds. So instead, Gert lays out in the middle of the floor of her and Old Lace’s room attempting to do what little yoga she remembers her mom doing in the mornings. It’s not working. The burn of the muscles doesn’t really relieve the soreness and instead of stretching she keeps thinking of all the ways she’s doing the poses incorrectly and injuring herself further. 

Anxiety is so much fun. 

She gave up actually stretching about ten minutes ago. If anyone asks she’s in the starfish pose. But really she’s trying to wrack her brains to come up with a new anxiety fix. One that can happen on no money, no guidance, and with no medical supervision.

At least she was alone. Alex and Nico had gone on a run to find supplies. Molly and Karolina were in the kitchen prepping for dinner. Chase and Old Lace were last seen playing fetch in the hallways. She didn’t have the energy to delve into Old Lace’s love of Chase or vice versa. Especially since small intimate moments kept happening between Gert and Chase, but they hadn’t talked past her anxious statement that what happened at the dance was a one time thing. They often shared small glances at each other. Their hands reaching for each other during particularly stressful meetings. Once or twice they had ended up sleeping on the couch curled around each other, both of them too freaked to go to bed alone. Gert is pretty sure that the entire gang is sick of their lack of relationship and tiptoeing around one another. But Gert is dealing with so much (just like everyone else) and the thought of laying any vulnerabilities out in the open make her muscles tense up even more. She’s sore enough as it is. 

Gert tries some square breathing, a breathing technique a therapist had taught her when she was younger, before a short knock on her door sounds. Gert thought she should probably jump up and not have whoever was at the door (anyone besides Molly--who was still incapable of knocking. She’s such a little sister) see her sprawled on the floor clearly suffering. But she was somewhat comfortable, finally. And she was too tired to pretend to be okay for once. She releases a breath and lets out a soft “come in” before she hears the door open and cranes her neck to see who knocked, wincing slightly at the pull of her muscles. 

“Gert?” Chase questions squatting down near her head, eyebrows furrowed in concern. God, Gert thinks, she is stupidly into this boy. 

“Yeah?” Gert asks trying to quell the flutter in her stomach at the look of pure concern shining from Chase’s eyes. 

“You okay?” He asks, the concern still there but with a slight uptick of his lips. Gert assumes it’s from the utter lack of trying to move from her human rug position. 

“Uhm, define okay?” She doesn’t have the energy to lie. This was a step, right? She trusts Chase. This was as good as time as any to peel a layer of brick away from her carefully crafted walls. 

“What’s wrong?” Chase asks instead. Gert figures that’s a better question--nothing is okay anymore Chase knows that better than anyone. He’s been not okay for longer than any of them. But what’s wrong is still a little too vague. Gert scrunches her brows thinking about how to answer his question before Chase speaks again. 

“Let me rephrase,” Chase starts, and Gert is so comforted by his knowledge of her that he knows he needs to reframe the question. “What’s going on that you have melted onto the floor with no desire to move.” Gert considers her answer. She was tired and she didn’t want to open a can of worms, but she also didn’t want to lie. 

“I’m sore.” Gert finally lets out softly. The concern in Chase’s eyes stay, but knowing there isn’t immediate danger, he softens. 

“Sore? Do you know what from?” He asks. Gert thinks that maybe Chase is trying to recount the past few days as if he missed Gert doing something strenuous. 

“Apparently being an anxious mess all the time is hard on the ol’ muscles.” She jokes with a shrug that is haphazard due to her commitment of not moving off of the floor. She purposely looks away from Chase. She doesn’t know if she can handle his confusion or his compassion right now. 

“I bet.” He tells her and she smiles slightly. 

“It’s a specialized skill. I’ve been training for years.” Gert jokes backs.

“The best in the business, probably.... Can I help?” Chase asks finally sitting down fully and stretching out his legs. His hands braced behind him on the floor. He situates himself so he is looking down at her face. “I could give you a massage.” Chase offers somewhat uncomfortably. Gert considers. 

On the one hand this seems like a massively bad idea for Chase’s hands to ever touch her body again. He is too hot for her own good and the second he puts her hands on her she will definitely want to jump him. She still remembers the way his hands caressed her body and the feel safety because of his weight on top of her from the last time. 

On the other hand. Her body really hurts and she knows that Chase hates when anyone of the group isn’t as okay as possible. He really is the ultimate Mom Friend. 

If anyone ever asks what possesses her to say the following words she is blaming it on pure exhaustion. But instead of giving Chase a no, Gert has the brilliant idea to say: 

“If you give me a massage I’m definitely going to make out with you.” Chase blinks at the statement. He acts as if he wasn’t sure if he had actually heard the words. Meanwhile, Gert decides that now would be the perfect time for the floor to swallow her whole. The silence lasts a beat too long and Gert is debating exactly what to say to get out of this horrible situation. Every worse case scenario playing out of her head. 

“I think that sounds like a great idea.” Chase finally says breaking out in a big grin and chuckling down at her. 

“I can’t believe I said those words aloud.” Gert replies with a slight blush warming her cheeks. 

“Honestly this seems very you. Blunt and to the point. I am...surprised this hasn’t happened sooner.” Chase tells her while he attempts to stop his laughter.

“You’re surprised I haven’t said I would make out with you sooner? Someone is full of themselves.” Gert responds still very much dedicated to not moving from the floor. 

“No. Not the making out part.” Chase tells her hastily before he clears his throat. Gert gives him a kind smile at his awkwardness. “I’ve just been expecting you to either shut me down or, well, tell me we were together like, every day now.” Chase finally says. 

“Oh.” Gert responds before finally peeling herself off of the floor and rolling her neck. Chase looks...hesitantly optimistic and Gert decides everything was already terrible. They live in a shithole she was pretty sure was going to cave in on them, they’re kidnappers, runaways, freaks, and their parents were all murderers. For once, maybe Gert could have the cute boy. The boy she has loved for awhile. The boy who could give her massages when the anxiety and stress got too bad. A boy she could comfort when his world was too heavy to handle on his own. It was difficult for Gert to ever let people help her. But, fuck it, Gert thought. 

She slowly rises to her knees and scoots over to him. His expression awes as she moves closer and closer. Gert decides if she is going to do this she might as well go all out. She raises one of her knees and put it over his legs so she straddles him. His hands immediately come to her waist and he sits up as Gert lowers herself onto him. She gives him a small smile. 

“I want to do this. I want us.” Gert finally tells him. Her heart ramming into her chest. Chase, for his part, looks like the fucking world is nothing but sunshine and perfect afternoons on the beach. He moves his hands, one cups her cheek and the other wraps around the back of her neck while he slowly begins massaging our her kinks.

Gert lets out a soft moan before Chase’s control snaps and he starts kissing her in earnest. They stay together on the floor for awhile. Slow and exploratory--everything their first kiss wasn’t. And by the end Chase had kept up his end of the deal and gave her neck and shoulders a good massage. Gert couldn’t help but relax near him. Problem solved. Chase was hers. 

Her anxiety would never be solved by someone else, though. Even though she was deliriously happy in this moment, a small part of Gert’s brain was listing all of the reasons why this was a bad idea. But Chase was there to talk it out and she was tired of handling everything on her own. After all, isn’t this what teams do? They help share the load? 

A loud bang sounds from the kitchen and Chase and Gert hear raised voices. Gert rises to her knees again and gently gives Chase a kiss on the forehead before standing and rolling her body. Chase still on the floor seemingly in a daze. 

“You coming?” Gert asks as she walks to the door. 

“Oh yeah, I’m right behind you.” The always to the statement implied.

**Author's Note:**

> title from ariana grande's lyrics in breathin. 
> 
> hope you enjoy! 
> 
> -SleepyBanshee


End file.
